Equipment for the automation of catering, bar or other products of goods sales services

ABSTRACT

Serving lines (1) have ends that extend into a kitchen (2). At the sides of the serving lines (1) are seats (12), shelves (11), distribution ports sealed off with flaps (10), and equipment for remote ordering. Orders are transmitted to the kitchen (2), which is equipped with a terminal (8) and a printer (9). An order is prepared and placed, with the bill, on a tray (18) that is deposited at the end of a serving line, which automatically transports the tray to the position of the customer who originated the order. A flap (10) then opens temporarily for the tray to be removed. After eating, the customer goes to a till, presents the bill, pays and leaves. A processor monitors automatic operation of the system; it is linked to the till for the appropriate checks. Special serving lines are also proposed to which customers with prepaid cards have access, offering such customers remote payment services as well.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention concerns equipment for the automation of catering, bar orother products or goods sales services, which has been designed toappreciably increase productivity in serving and to meet the followingcustomer requirements for catering or bar services for example to enterthe premises and immediately find somewhere to sit, without having towait and join long queues by the till, such as is the case at presentwith self-service and fast food restaurants; to find someone to take theorder immediately; to receive the items ordered in a relatively shorttime; to be able to manage the waiting time freely and to the optimumextent; to have a public information and remote service facility, alsoproviding a bar and catering service; and finally, to be able to leavethe restaurant avoiding long queues at the till.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Basically the equipment as per the invention consists of a tunnel thatis generally in a straight line, with the entry to the restaurant at oneend where the service staff are posted, such as the kitchen for example,and with a longitudinal conveyor with lateral flaps opposite and lateralhorizontal shelves, served by comfortable seats for the customers whocan access the line directly, without waiting at the till.

In the most simplified form, opposite each seat on the side wall of thetunnel there is a call button and an intercom or equivalent means withwhich the customer can communicate with a central operator who takes theorders and inputs them in the system by PC.

There is no reason why, as an alternative to or in combination with theintercom, there should not be a function key which identifies each seatby a code and with which the customer can input the order into thesystem automatically, identifying each dish with a code which appears onthe menu displayed, for example, on an illuminated board affixed to thewall of the service bay. The tunnel projects slightly above the shelvesto act as a table, so that those seated on either side of the tunnel cansee each other and converse.

Special serving lines are also envisaged in which a terminal is providedat each position arranged laterally in relation to the tunnel, to readand write discount or subscription cards which the customer can purchaseat the entrance to the restaurant or from any other authorized centerand on the tunnel there is a PC with associated keyboard and mouse ateach position. The customer on this line can use the PC to obtain moredetails on the menu and to place his order remotely, and while waitingfor the items he has ordered, the customer can use the PC for differenttypes of service for which the equipment is designed.

In the kitchen at the end of each serving line, there is a PC withkeyboard and mouse and a printer. The VDU of this PC displays thevarious line orders in chronological order. The operator concernedprepares and places on a tray what the customer has ordered, togetherwith any items necessary for their consumption, and with the billproduced by the printer, and then places the tray at this end of thetunnel conveyor and by activating a control, actuates the conveyor inthe direction of the customer. Controlled by sensors and a simpleautomated system, the conveyor stops with the tray opposite the seat forwhich it is intended and the side flap on the tunnel opens automaticallybeside the customer who placed the order, and he then removes the trayafter which the flap closes automatically and the kitchen operator canrepeat the procedure described to serve the various customers on thatline. After finishing the meal, the customer can leave the restaurant bypassing via the till where he presents the bill for payment. Customerson lines with PC's who have discount or subscription cards on which thecost of the service used is automatically debited can pass through aquick check at a dedicated till or can leave the restaurant withoutwaiting at the till, by means of a gate which opens automatically usingthe same card.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a plan view from the top and sections of the equipment as perthe invention;

FIG. 2 shows further details of the serving line shown in

FIG. 1, with parts in lateral elevation and a section along line II--II;

FIG. 3 shows details of a seat position on the line in FIG. 1, seenalong section line III--III;

FIG. 4 illustrates a block wiring diagram of the equipment;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the various operating phases of theequipment.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

With reference firstly to FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, it will be seen that theequipment comprises several serving lines of any appropriate length,positioned alongside each other at an appropriate reciprocal distanceapart, terminating at one end at a wall of the restaurant, for example awall 102 of a kitchen 2, where the serving personnel operate.

The lines 1 are preferably straight lines, but to meet specialrequirements, they may be structured differently. For preference, theseserving lines 1 are modular in type and can be combined to facilitatethe construction of assemblies of the required length.

Each line comprises a horizontal tunnel 3, of appropriate section,maintained at the correct distance from the floor by supports 4 and withone end open ending at a window 5 in the wall 102 of the kitchen, whilstthe other end is sealed. The lower part of the tunnel 3 is occupiedlongitudinally by a form of conveyor 6, for example a belt or strapconveyor and equipped where necessary with equidistant transverse fins106 forming small bays suitable for holding a tray, as described below.

The conveyor 6 projects for an appropriate distance inside the kitchen 2where it is linked to an appropriate means of motorization 7 in asuitable housing. This means may consist of a motor with electronicspeed and phase control, with an associated tachometer unit and brake,connected to the conveyor 6 by a belt drive and toothed pulley.

In the kitchen 2 opposite each serving line 1 is a PC 8 and a printer 9,which are described below.

The tunnel 3 is equipped laterally on each side with equidistantwindows, positioned above the conveyor 6 and normally sealed off withflaps 10 that open automatically. This same tunnel 3 is equippedlaterally on both sides with horizontal projecting shelves 11,positioned beneath the said flaps 10 and of a height suitable to fulfillthe function of a table for customers who can be comfortably seated onthe seats 12, with at least one seat opposite each flap. Opposite eachseat or position, the following may be provided: a sensor 112, forexample optoelectronic in type, which automatically signals that thereis a customer present; a call button 13 and an intercom 14 or anequivalent means, for example, a telephone with mobile micro-telephone,with which a customer freely entering a restaurant using the equipmentdescribed takes a seat or similar 12, and can then call a centralexchange shown as 15 in FIG. 4, where the order can be placed, selectingfrom the menu which may be displayed in any appropriate form, forexample on an illuminated board 16 fixed to the wall 102, facing theserving line 1. The central exchange 15 is served by an operator whotakes the various orders in person. If the operator of the centralexchange 15 is busy, an automated system takes over which advises thecustomer via the intercom that it is not possible to connect him andthat he will be called back as soon as possible, and waiting music canbe played. Each button 13 and/or each sensor 112 will have its own codeand the operator of the central exchange 15 will have a known meansenabling him to call back the position which asked for a connection. Assoon as it becomes possible, the customer places the order by means ofthe intercom and the operator of the central exchange 15 inputs theorder remotely into the CPU 17 which handles automatic operation of theentire system, as described below. According to a minor variant inconstruction, the central exchange 15 may be equipped with a telephonemessage service that automatically takes the different orders which arethen extracted and prepared by the operator concerned.

As an alternative to or in combination with the presence of parts 13 and14 mentioned above, a small function keyboard, not shown, can beprovided at each position, with which the customer can directly inputhis own order remotely into the CPU 17, using reference codesidentifying each course as displayed on the menu.

In this case, the intercom 13/14 can be used to advise the customer howto use the said function keyboard.

The CPU 17 is also connected to the units 8/9 on each serving line andadvises the kitchen of the orders received in chronological order, andif necessary also arranged according to the time needed for preparation.

The kitchen can be organized completely automatically, by means ofdistributors, conveyors, robots and/or other systems, or insemi-automatic or manual form. In the latter cases, the kitchen operatorprepares the customer's order on an associated tray 18 together with thereceipt produced on the printer 9, then places the tray at the startingend of the conveyor 6 and sets it on its way with selective controlsprovided for example on the PC 8, which identify the position to whichthe tray is to be sent. A unit 19 is provided to control operation ofthe conveyor 6 and the associated motor-drive 7, which may beintelligent type as described, so that the tray 18 conveyed in each casestops exactly opposite the flap 10 by the customer for which it isintended.

To this effect, there is no reason why there should not be at least onesensor 20 in the tunnel 3 opposite each flap 10 to detect the presenceof the tray, this sensor being activated selectively by controls in thekitchen bay, this being of an intuitive design and easily achievable byengineers in the sector. When the tray reaches its destination, the flap10 at the position concerned opens automatically, and a message can betransmitted automatically to the customer via the intercom, asking himto remove the tray with the order and the bill. In a different solution,a means can also be provided that automatically ejects the tray from theconveyor, placing it on a small straight shelf at the side, positionedoutside the tunnel 3 and not shown in the. drawings, from which thecustomer can remove it when he chooses. When the tray has been removedfrom the tunnel, the flap 10 closes again automatically, enabling theconveyor 6 to be used again.

The customer can place more than one order, and will receive a bill foreach.

When the customer has finished his order or orders, he can leave therestaurant by passing via the till 21 which, due to the circuit linkwith the seat 12 and the CPU 17, knows what has been ordered at eachposition and is able to make the necessary checks and subsequentlyupdate the equipment memories. The customer presents his bill or billsat the till 21, pays the bill in cash or with a credit or debit card orany other form of electronic funds transfer and can then leave.

The line described is a simple serving line to which those wishing toconverse can also have access and who can sit on one or both sides ofthe serving line. The tunnel 3 is restricted in height and as suchenables those seated on opposite sides of a line to see each other andconverse.

Both simple and special serving lines can be provided in one and thesame restaurant, of the type shown in the drawings, which are also ableto offer a remote payment service. In these lines, the flaps 10 on oneside are offset one step in relation to those opposite (FIG. 1) and ontunnel 3 a PC 22 is provided for each flap 10, with an associatedkeyboard 122 and on the shelves 11 there is a mouse 222 for each PC. ThePCs 22 are offset on one side in relation to the other and can ifnecessary be equipped with separating barriers, not shown, so thatcustomers positioned on one side of a special line cannot see customerson the opposite side and are not disturbed by the customers next tothem. At the sides of the tunnel 3, there is a terminal 23 for eachposition for reading and writing a discount or subscription card, whichthe customer can purchase at the entrance to the restaurant or from anauthorized center. Each PC 22 can be linked by means of the CPU 17 to aninternal remote service unit 24 (FIG. 4) or by means of a modem 25 to anexternal remote service unit.

After sitting down at his selected seat, the customer on the specialserving line introduces his own card in terminal 23 and can place anorder by the same means as the simple line or, more advantageously, viathe keyboard on his own PC 22 which will input the order directly intothe CPU 17, whilst this same PC 22 can give useful detailed informationon its use and the menu. Once the order has been placed and whilstwaiting for the tray to arrive as described above for the simple servingline, the customer on the special serving line can use the PC forvarious purposes for which it is designed, for example, for playingvideo games, or to access internal or external data base(s), for examplefor connection to the <Internet>.

The CPU 17 controls the use of each PC 22 and updates the associatedaccount to be debited to the card introduced into the associatedterminal 23. The cost of any order placed with the kitchen can also bedebited to the card automatically. At the end of the service, thecustomer on the special line withdraws his card from the terminal 23 andcan leave the restaurant by passing through a fast-track till 121 whichmakes a check against the information on the CPU 17, or by passingthrough an automatic gate of known type, not shown, to replace orsupplement the till 121 which can be used if the terminal at theautomatic gate finds discrepancies. In each case any errors can becleared up by a closed circuit television recording system.

It can be seen from FIG. 4 that the CPU 17 is also linked to an internaldatabase 26, which is useful for automated control of the restaurant,for example, with regard to accounting, stores, the presence or absenceof personnel, and/or for statistical or registration purposes and/orother purposes.

FIG. 5 shows a possible flowchart of the operating phases of theequipment. Reference 27 is the customer entering, who may be a "type A"customer (reference number 28) destined for a simple serving line, or a"type B" customer (reference number 29) destined for a special servingline and already in possession of the discount or subscription card, ora "type C" customer (reference number 30) again destined for speciallines but not holding a card and who purchases one at phase 31.Customers on the simple line place their orders by intercom 32 which arethen input into the automated system by the central exchange operator inphase 33.

This phase is followed by phase 34 which is preparation of the order andplacement of the bill on the tray by the kitchen operators, phase 35 isstart-up of the conveyor which transports the tray from the kitchen tothe position for which it is intended, and then phase 36 entails controlof the tray's routing, stopping it opposite the correct position, andfinally phase 37 when the flap opens at the appointed position and phase38 ejects the tray with the ticket therefrom the and subsequent closureof the flap.

The customers 29 and 30 on the special line insert their card in theappropriate terminal at the selected position, referenced 39, and canthen place an order with the meal service remotely via their PC asindicated by phase 40, or by means of the intercom, indicated byconnection 41. After placing an order with the meal service, customerson the special serving lines can access the remote information services,as indicated by 42. If an order has been placed with the meal service,the sequence of operating phases for customers on the special servinglines is 34, 35, 36, 37 and 38 as already described for customers on thesimple serving lines. Link 43 shows that a customer on the specialserving lines need not necessarily place an order with the meal serviceand may just use the PC and the services for which this equipment isdesigned. Links 44 and 45 indicate that both the customers on thespecial serving lines and those on the normal lines can repeat an orderseveral times.

After the phases concerned, the flow 46 of customers on the simpleserving lines (i.e., type A customers), passes by the till with the billin order to pay, as indicated by 47 and can then leave the restaurant.The flow 48 of customers on the special serving lines (i.e., type B or Ccustomers), after removing the card from the reading and updatingterminal, as indicated by 49, passes via the appropriate fast-trackcontrol till or via an automatic gate, indicated by 50, and can thenleave the restaurant.

The equipment as per the invention clearly enables an appreciablethroughput and good quality of automatic service.

It is of course understood that the equipment described can also be usedfor the automation of services other than catering, for example bar orother product or goods sales services. A similar line can for example beused for the sale of foods, completely revolutionizing the currentoperating logic of supermarkets and hypermarkets.

It is finally understood that the description refers to a preferred formof construction of the invention, to which numerous variants andmodifications can be made, especially in constructional terms. There isno reason why the terminal 23 for reading and writing discount orsubscription vouchers, should not also be provided on the simple servinglines, in order to facilitate the service for customers using thesubsequent phases for leaving the restaurant. This alternative wouldthen enable pay and view type entertainment services to be providedincluding via the intercom or telephone 13/14. There is no reason why asmall printer should not be provided for a print-out in clear of therelative expenditure for each usage of the discount or subscriptioncard, on the special serving line positions at least, or to issue a billto replace that previously assumed as being issued in the kitchen. Theseand any other variants which are moreover known intuitively by engineersin the sector do not go beyong the scope of the invention, as describedabove, as illustrated and in accordance with the claims below.

In the following claims, the reference numbers shown in brackets arepurely indicative and not limitative in terms of protection of thesesame claims.

We claim:
 1. A system for delivering items from an order processingstation (2) to a plurality of remote delivery stations (11, 12), eachdelivery station serving a single customer and being provided with meansfor remotely ordering items from the processing station, comprising:(a)at least one serving line (1) capable of serving a plurality of thedelivery stations (11, 12), each at least one line (1) being connecteddirectly to the order processing station (2) and includinga longitudinalhorizontal central conveyor (6) on both sides of which there areprovided horizontal shelves (11) serving as tables and seats (12) forthe customers, said conveyor (6) being adapted to carry the ordereditems and being covered by a tunnel (3) projecting above a level definedby said horizontal shelves (3), said tunnel (3) having opposite sidesand being provided on its opposed sides with ports through which itemscan be withdrawn from the conveyor (6), suitable doors (10) beingprovided for closing said ports, identification and control means (13,14) at each delivery station (11, 12) for enabling the order processingstation (2) to identify any particular delivery station, and an order bya customer seated at the said particular delivery station, and aterminal at each delivery station to receive a credit or debit card topay for the order; (b) display and processing means (8, 9) at the orderprocessing station (2) for displaying orders from each customer and forenabling the processing and carrying out of each separate order,including issuance of a corresponding ticket or bill; (c) means (19) forcontrolling the conveyor (6) to ensure that each item placed on theconveyor is conveyed to the desired port of the pertaining deliverystation (11, 12) and that the pertaining door (10) can be opened forwithdrawal of the item; and (d) a central processing unit (CPU 17) whichreceives the various order and which automatically controls operation ofthe whole system, wherein the system is disposed in an establishmenthaving an exit, and further comprises a dedicated counter (121) at theexit for a fast-track control of the card, which is linked to thecentral processing unit (CPU 17) for performing financial checks.
 2. Asystem according to claim 1, in which the means for remotely orderingprovided at each delivery station, includes an intercommunication system(14) with a call button (13), linked to a central exchange (15) whereoperators receive the orders and input the orders into the centralprocessing unit (CPU 17).
 3. A system according to claim 2, in which thecentral exchange (15) is equipped with a telephone message service forautomatic receipt of orders.
 4. A system according to claim 1, in whichthe means for remotely ordering provided at each delivery stationincludes a function keyboard, whereby the customer can place the orderdirectly to the central processing unit (CPU 17).
 5. A system accordingto claim 1, in which each seat (12) at each delivery station is equippedwith a sensor (112) to indicate the arrival of a customer.
 6. A systemaccording to claim 1, in which the conveyor (6) of each at least oneserving line is a belt conveyor driven by a motor (7) controlled by acontrol unit (19) which co-operates with sighting sensors (20)positioned in the tunnel (3) at each delivery station to detect andindicate the presence of the ordered item at the required deliverystation.
 7. A system according to claim 1, in which the terminal (23)for the card can be used by the customer to obtain access topay-and-view type entertainment services.
 8. A system according to claim1, in which each delivery station equipped with a terminal (23) for acard is further provided with a PC (22) for placing orders directly withthe central processing unit (CPU 17) and for access to pay-and-view typeentertainment services, the PC (22) serving as the means for remotelyordering.
 9. A system according to claim 8, in which the computers arearranged on top of the tunnel (3) so as to face one side or the otherside of the serving line alternately and the seats along this servingline are likewise offset on each side so that they are equidistant witha spacing equivalent to twice that between two adjacent PCs.
 10. Asystem according to claim 1, wherein the establishment is a restaurantand the items comprise meals.